I read a short story in an anthology around 1998 (the book could have been older than that) which went like this - A human space exploration scientific crew is exploring an alient planet (peaceful planet, as I recall) when they run into an alien spaceship (from a different planet which also happened to be there) - the aliens were telepaths. The alien commander and first officer discuss the earthlings after a meeting and realize that the human crew are the descendants of a species (Banthu/Klanthu/Zantha, something like that) which had tried to violently take over the galaxy some 20/30/50,000 years ago and which had been beaten back by the combined might of the rest of the galaxy. They had supposedly been eliminated but they somehow managed to survive and are back in space only a few thousand years after they were completely beaten (which is something the aliens are amazed by). The alien commander kills the human explorers via telepathy but realizes that there is no information available...

We're hearing Theta Protocol in Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. TV series for some time (Coulson was hiding it from the team). In the last episode S02E19 of the TV series, this conversation happened regarding Theta Protocol: Maria Hill: Last Thing. Theta Protocol. Is it ready? Coulson: Yes, it is. Time to bring in the Avengers. What exactly is Theta Protocol? This clearly sets up the events of Avengers: Age of Ultron movie (which I have already watched), but I am unable to find a picture of Theta Protocol in the movie. Answer Based on last night's Agents of SHIELD, it appears that Theta Protocol had to do with the Helicarrier that was being stored in an unknown SHIELD base. One of the Koenig brothers was running the base for Coulson and Fury. So I would assume by saying that Theta was ready, Coulson was informing Fury that the carrier was ready to be put into play if necessary.

I read a short story, can’t remember if it was part of a larger narrative or just on its own. It was about a crew that was taking a bunch of space tourists to a planet that had plants with seeds in glass-like structures that make certain sounds. The main character in this story feels connected to this planet because there’s a Valley of Sound, where there’s a large number of these glass plants that make all sounds imaginable. People can almost pick out a loved one’s voice for instance. I absolutely love this concept but can’t for the life of me remember what the story/book was called!

Orcs appear to be sentient. Orcs are (possibly) derived from elves who do possess fëa. So do they possess "a soul"? and if so, what happens to it when they die? do they get the gift of men? Answer No. The following quote (emphasis mine) from an essay on Orcs in Morgoth's Ring , volume X of History of Middle-Earth , settles this question: The least could have been primitive (and much more powerful and perilous) Orcs; but by practising when embodied procreation they would (cf. Melian) [become] more and more earthbound, unable to return to spirit-state (even demon-form), until released by death (killing), and they would dwindle in force. When released they would, of course, like Sauron, be 'damned': i.e. reduced to impotence, infinitely recessive: still hating but unable more and more to make it effective physically (or would not a very dwindled dead Orc-state be a poltergeist?). But again - would Eru provide fëar for such creatures? For the Eagles etc. perhaps. B...

A user posted this comment . At the end of it, the comment reads: Buhfik t' kunli tor du! What does this mean? Rand al’Thor says it’s in Vulcan, but their translation seems uncertain. Answer The question: What does it mean? There is a distinction here between that and: What was it intended to mean? It's meaning: It's garbled because of approximate translation issues, I reffer you to the next sentence. What was it intended to mean? I used this online translator to translate a short phrase. Since the Vulcan language regards concepts of belief as irrational and not worthy of consideration, it denies the concepts of superstition - not only to the extent of them posessing any validity, but to the existence of words to describe them. (This is entirely the opinion, related actions and recollections of the author of the original cited post and should not be construed as containing any cannonical weight whatsoever.) The short phrase put in was "Best of luck to you."

I was having a debate with my brother the other day, about this question. He claims Clara is the longest time companion because she helped every incarnation of the Doctor. (little spoiler from Series 8): Even since his childhood, as we witnessed in "LISTEN" That can't be right because those were Clara's echoes for the most part. My counter answer: Handles, the Cyberman head we met in The Time of The Doctor. The Doctor got stranded in Trenzalore for 300 years, waiting for the TARDIS to come back after returning Clara home. During that time, he probably saw three or four generations of Trenzalorians (is that word right?) live their full lives, but Handles remained by his side after finally breaking down when the TARDIS and Clara returned 300 years later. I'm not very familiar with Classic Who. It's been impossible for us to get access to those episodes here in my country. Is there a companion for the Doctor who travelled with him for more than 300 years? My firs...

Why didn't Harry ever learn to cast spells without vocalizing? Hermione learned how to do it, and Snape warned Harry about learning how to do it. It would have helped in many places.

In the Voyager episode " Course: Oblivion ", the duplicate Voyager that was created on the "demon class" planet made it to the same location as the actual Voyager which ( a few episodes earlier ) traveled 20,000 light years with the help of a Borg transwarp coil? It would seem that only one of the ships would have gotten the transwarp coil since that happened well after the crew was "cloned". How the heck did the duplicate Voyager make it that far in the same amount of time without the coil? Answer The episode Course: Oblivion takes place in stardate 52586.3: "Captain's log, stardate 52586.3. We've had a lot to celebrate lately – Tom and B'Elanna's wedding, Ensign Harper's new baby, and the continued health of our enhanced warp drive, which has taken us within striking distance of home." The episode Dark Frontier , where the Transwarp coil was acquired, takes place in 52619.2: "Captain's Log, Stardate 52619.2. We g...

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban chapter 1 describes the first six weeks of Harry's second summer holidays, which he's spent at the Dursley's home at Privet Drive. It specifically says that he has his cauldron there in a cupboard. The most the Dursleys could do these days was to lock away Harry's spellbooks, wand, cauldron and broomstick at the start of the summer holidays, and forbid him to talk to the neighbours. Now, Harry has bought this cauldron two years ago, and uses it at Hogwarts every year for Potions lessons. There seems no chance that he's use the cauldron for anything during the summer holidays. Why did he take the cauldron home, rather than leaving it in Hogwarts? I can mostly understand why he took his other possessions. The owl Hedwig needed care and served as company for him, he needed his spellbooks to write homework, and I can understand why he wouldn't want to part from his wand or the Nimbus Two Thousand rancing broom, which is desc...

The question Why does R2-D2 try to electrocute Yoda? presuposses that such an attempt at electrocution occurred, something that I don't recall ever even happening in The Empire Strikes Back in the first place. When exactly does R2 try to attack or shock Yoda? Answer He doesn't. Or at least he doesn't in the film. Here's a complete transcript of the scene from Empire : "With the aid of a walking stick, the tiny stranger moves over to one of the cases of supplies. He begins to rummage around. Artoo moves to the edge of the case - standing almost eye level to the creature who is carelessly handling the supplies - and squeaks his disapproval. Their tiny visitor pick up the container of food Luke was eating from and takes a bite. LUKE Put that down. Hey! That's my dinner! The creature spits out the bite he has taken. He makes a face. CREATURE How you get so big, eating food of this kind? He flips the container in Luke...

Is there even one confirmed instance of J.K.Rowling changing her mind about HP book detail to accomodate fans? To be specific, I mean an instance where: Rowling had a plan to write a specific detail in one of books #2-7 in one way. There was a specific fan request/desire to have the detail turn out another way. Either mass-movement, or a few very vocal fans. Rowling changed the detail to accommodate this request/desire. Must be explicitly acknowledged as the cause of the change by Rowling . I might be willing to consider nearly-certain circumstantial proof from another source (e.g. documented proof of original draft detail, and correctly-timed highly public pressure to change it) if nobody can give the example that is officially acknowledged, but the proof must be extra-convincing for me to accept the asnwer. Limited to HP books 2-7. Preferably something less than 100% trivial (e.g. color of Hermione's dress would be trivial. Who married whom or increased importance of Neville in l...

The part I remember is where the man is driving and rolls down his car window and everything outside his car is grey. It's like a fog, but inside the car things look normal through the windows. God is the artist and he's erasing his work, this guy is supposed to be saved by being in his car with the windows up. Answer "The Unpleasant Profession of Jonathan Hoag" by Robert A. Heinlein , also the answer to this old question . Originally published in Unknown Worlds , October 1942 , available at the Internet Archive . The story has its own Wikipedia page . The part I remember is where the man is driving and rolls down his car window and everything outside his car is grey. It's like a fog, but inside the car things look normal through the windows. A few blocks later Randall saw a patrolman standing on the sidewalk, warming himself in the sun, and watching some boys playing sand-lot football. He pulled up to the curb beside him. "Run down the window, Cyn." ...

At the start of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's/Sorceror's Stone Voldemort's Killing Curse backfires due to Lily's sacrifice protecting Harry from Voldemort. leaving Harry with his scar and a loose piece of Voldemort's soul and Voldemort as a loose soul, self-described as "Less than a ghost". Voldemort was not dead, but had no physical body (until he got better in book 4). What happened to his body? Did it disappear? Or was it left in the rubble of the house, alongside the bodies of James and Lily? Answer The Body was destroyed or removed from the house, and never seen by the ministry. In book 4 we find out the ministry presumes Voldemort in exile: The four of you stand accused of capturing an Auror - Frank Longbottom - and subjecting him to the Cruciatus Curse, believing him to have knowledge of the present whereabouts of your exiled master , He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named If either party had thought he was dead either the Longbottoms wouldn't have bee...

We have a question asking When and how does Vader learn that Luke is his son? , but the Emperor knows too, as he says in The Empire Strikes Back : We have a new enemy, the young rebel who destroyed the Death Star. I have no doubt this boy is the offspring of Anakin Skywalker. The answer to the aforementioned question shows that in Disney canon comics, Vader found out that the one who destroyed the Death Star was named "Luke Skywalker" only when he sent out Boba Fett on a personal investigation, which the Emperor did not know about. I am looking for an answer that is in Disney canon and takes these comic book developments into account. So how did the Emperor learn that Luke is Anakin's son? (And for that matter, that he was the one who destroyed the Death Star)? Points to consider There's been a lot of misunderstandings in the comments and such, so I want to reiterate a few points: Luke is not the only untrained force-sensitive in the Galaxy!!! There are loads of oth...

Here is the relevant text from Half-blood Prince : "You see," Dumbledore said, turning back to Harry and again speaking as though Uncle Vernon had not uttered, "if you have indeed inherited the house, you have also inherited —" He flicked his wand for a fifth time. There was a loud crack, and a house- elf appeared, with a snout for a nose, giant bat's ears, and enormous bloodshot eyes, crouching on the Dursleys' shag carpet and covered in grimy rags. How was he able to accomplish this? He did not 'own' Kreacher as his personal house-elf; Kreacher was not (yet) in service to Hogwarts (as Winky was at the end of Goblet of Fire ). Beyond just "because he is Dumbledore, duh", is there something else? Is this a (relatively minor) oversight by JKR? And instead couldn't Dumbledore have asked Harry to try to summon Kreacher instead, and use that to prove that ownership of #12 Grimmauld Place had indeed transferred to Harry from Sirius? Thanks.

There are two characters who seem to be able to handle and wear the One Ring without being affected by its power. One is the mysterious Tom Bombadil. Later in the book, another character seems to have a similar ability: Sam, believing Frodo to be dead, takes the ring and vows to finish the job. Upon learning that Frodo is still alive, Sam hurries to him and willingly gives the ring back to him. He was able to do this despite being inside Mordor, and despite Sauron's actively seeking the ring bearer. How was Sam able to resist the temptations of the ring at such a critical stage in the journey? Answer I think a few things contributed to his resistance: Hobbits are naturally more resistant to the influences of the ring than other races (Gandalf comments on this). Sam had only been carrying the ring for a short time, the longer the ring is in someone's possession, the more addicted they become to it. Sam's love for Frodo was too great for the ring to corrupt. The ring may ha...

In The Legend of Korra (second Avatar Series from Nickelodeon) professional tournament bending has a trio of earth, water, and fire benders squaring off against one another; but why isn't airbending represented? Answer Avatar Aang is the last of the Air Nomads, a group wiped out by the Fire Nation. He had three children who could have been airbenders: Kya is the first of Aang and Katara's three children and their only daughter, as well as the only waterbender that the couple parented. Kya and most likely her children are unable to airbend, so can be discounted. Bumi is Aang and Katara's second child and oldest son, as well as the only non-bender among the couple's three children. Bumi is a non-bender, so he and his lineage can likely be discounted. Tenzin, the youngest son of Avatar Aang and Katara, is the only airbending master, and represents the Air Nation on the United Republic Council. He resides on Air Temple Island,... with his pregnant wife, Pema, and his th...

I do not remember what they look like, nor can I find any answer to my question. I'm at the end of Old Man's War , so if you've read the book you can probably understand that trying to visualize them is kind of driving me a little nuts. I have tried to piece together what they look like from what's happening in the book, but it's just not coming to me. I'm really having a hard time because all I can remember about them is that they eat people and their name. Answer Yes, but you have to read the next book "The Ghost Brigades" and you'll get a little more information on what they look like, but not a lot. For some reason, I remember imagining that the Rraey look like humanoid birds or chickens because they squawk a lot during battle. On page 15 of the Ghost Brigades: a Rraey is examining humans. And he describes the human (he also describes himself) as roughly the same size and shape as he is, bipedal, and bilaterally symmetrical. The Rraey also no...

We know that Dark side is linked to emotion like fear and anger, but the interesting point here is the between line the two side of the force. As an example, what make Mind tricks a "acceptable" force power for a Jedi? How could you hurt someone, like Obi-Wan does in the Mos Eisley Cantina when he slashed a alien's arm off with his lightsaber, and still be a Jedi? Answer In the Star Wars Universe, the difference between the light side and dark side is...a gray area. Essentially, if you are using the Force out of anger, lust, greed, vengeance, or fear, you likely channel the dark side. If you are using the Force to defend you are using the light side. There are very few techniques which are unambiguously light or dark. The ability to stimulate cellular regeneration ('Force Heal') is generally considered light, but a malicious individual could use it to restore health to a torture victim, for instance, to prepare them for more. The only truly unique powers to eith...

It's uncanny how many alien races encountered in Star Trek are at a comparable level of technological development: humans, Vulcans, Romulans, Klingons, + numerous other species. The likelihood of all these races independently evolving warp drive within a few thousand years of each other seems improbable. Are there canonical explanations for this? A few possible answers (which may be supported by canon, I don't know): Advanced species share or involuntarily leak their technology with low-tech species. Advanced species "uplift" less evolved species as the Dominion did. Low-tech species are annihilated or absorbed into the empires/federations of expanding high-tech warp capable species. This continues until two or more advanced civilizations at the same military tech level eventually bump into each other. Most civilizations tend to stagnate once they hit a tech level say a few hundred or thousand years beyond our own. Many intelligent species either go extinct (eg, the T...

I'm trying to remember a novel I read in the late 1980s or early 1990s. Earth has been taken over by a robotic culture that has destroyed almost everything animal, vegetable, or human. A small number of humans survive like vermin in the corners, sneaking food, tools, and other supplies out of the factories. The different parts of the robotic culture are not completely unified into a single planetary mind. One faction has been experimenting with humans and has joined together some number (5? 8?) of humans at the temples. This "human starfish" can think as a single entity to some degree, and floats in a sort of amniotic tank in the robot's laboratory. Answer This sounds like Wolfbane , by Frederik Pohl and C M Kornbluth, first published in 1957 as a two-part serial in Galaxy. The aliens were called Pyramids, because... well, that's what they looked like... IIRC, there was only one of them actually on Earth, on the summit of Mount Everest, which had been neatly tri...

In ST:TNG episode " Evolution ", we see that Wesley's nanites are dropped off on Kavis Alpha IV. Do we ever hear of these particular species of nanites ever again (perhaps in sources other than the TV series)? Memory Alpha doesn't give us much on this, basically what's below: In 2366, nanites threatened the USS Enterprise-D with destruction of its main computer core during an experiment in the Kavis Alpha sector. After conflict with the crew of the Enterprise, and particularly the experiment's lead scientist Paul Stubbs, the nanites were relocated to Kavis Alpha IV, which Stubbs' influence had helped designate their new homeworld. The nanites left the Enterprise and began creating their own civilization on the planet. (TNG: "Evolution") Answer Within the TV and Film Series, there's no further mention of Wesley's Nanites. The last we see of them, they've been abandoned on Kavis Alpha IV. In the wider trek canon (books, etc), we meet...

I remember a scene where a younger person had been given the ring (or jewelry) from an older person who died in a scene prior. The younger person was leading a group of people (possibly dwarves, other friendly creatures in the mix), and they took shelter from the rain under an overhang. The person wearing the ring (or jewelry) foresaw it collapsing on them, so they all moved, and it collapsed. I'm pretty sure it's a children's book, but not 100%. Answer The scene you describe is right out of Lloyd Alexander's Chronicles of Prydain . The main character, assistant pig keeper Taran at some point acquires a magic amulet with 3 lines on it. Each line represents some power; wisdom, luck, love? etc. (I can't remember exactly) I can't remember which of the 5 books this happened in though as I read these as a child. However, I think that the amulet was in either book 3 Castle Lyr or book 4 Taran Wanderer, but don't quote me. I am 99% sure this series has that scene...

After reading Hugo's answer to this question , I learned that Darth Vader's famous suit was designed to ensure his survival in almost any environment even the vacuum of space My question is, are there any examples of Vader having to deal with this situation, for instance, walking across the surface of a moon or an asteroid? I am fairly certain this never happened in any of the films, but did this kind of thing ever happen in any of the comics or novels? I will accept answers drawn from the old Expanded Universe as well as the currently defined canon. Answer Yes I recall this happening at least once in Marvel's Darth Vader comic series, but it's more convenient for me to quote the canon novel Lords of the Sith : Vader hit a switch and depressurized the interceptor's cockpit, his armor shielding him from the vacuum. Then, as he neared the transport's midline, still swinging his ship left and right to dodge the incoming fire, he selected a spot on the transport...

I remember a trilogy of YA books I read as a kid, but I can't remember the name. Here are a few details, maybe they'll strike a chord with someone here. They were written sometime in the 90s. It was about a group of geniuses who all moved to an island to work on something. The protagonists were the children of the geniuses, and were even more brilliant than their parents. The protagonists made a supercomputer called either Sherlock or Watson. Probably Sherlock, since it's supposed to be superbrilliant. It had an accent, I think. This supercomputer was sometimes referred to as the most powerful computer in the world. Either the first or second book had a big red robot on the cover. Or maybe the cover was red and the robot wasn't. I think another book had a shark on the cover. I think this cover was yellow-themed. One of the adults was a traitor or villain of some sort. His (or her) identity was kept ambiguous for a while, and only revealed at the end of the third book. I...

Was Harry Potter an innately powerful/skillful Wizard in any way, based on canon? It seems that whenever Harry Potter performed some unusually potent bit of magic (potent as far as require raw power AND/OR skill), most of the time we find that it wasn’t innately Harry’s skill, but a combination of: some extraneous magic forces/rules/powers circumstance great reaction time (which is obviously extraordinary from his Quidditch playing; and is likely a larger factor in his dueling than the strength of his magic) general smartness or (the part that Harry’s detractors, including Voldemort missed) Harry’s strength of character/personality The only two counter-examples I can think of which show him as having extraordinary or at least obviously above average magical abilities are : His skill at flying brooms - while a part of it is pure physical skill, at least part is magical. His (corporeal) Patronus charm As far as examples of his unusual feats being due to reasons listed above : Obviously, ...

For those of you who don't know, Jack Thorne, has written a script called Harry Potter and the Cursed Child , which is set nineteen years after J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter books. As to be expected there are several contradictions with pre-existing canon. By canon I mean things from Rowling. (i.e. DVK's answer, levels 1-6 ) I'll be pretty liberal in counting contradictions, but the more concrete it is, the better. What discrepancies exist between The Cursed Child and existing Harry Potter canon?

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is the whole name of this majestic and well-known institution. Such institutions don't have names that don't make sense, or names longer than one would expect just for fun. Because of that, I think, that there should be a reason why the name is this and not just i.e. Hogwarts School of Witchcraft . That means that Witchcraft and Wizardry aren't the same things. What is the reason for the name? What is the difference between the Witchcraft and Wizardry? (Possibly the out-of-universe reason may be that it just sounds better, but if so it's sad, so I hope, you'll come up with something else) Answer Witchcraft and Wizardry mean the same thing, the only difference being who is doing it. Simply: it's witchcraft when a witch does it and wizardry when a wizard does it. There's nothing more to it than that. Wizard and its derivatives often functions as the generic he in the Harry Potter series. See for instance the ...

In Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Amos says: Had to get up at two, didn't we, Ced? I tell you, I'll be glad when he's got his Apparation test[...] I can infer that they had to wake up early to get there on time. Therefore, they had to use some other form of transportation that was not instant. Why didn't Amos just use Side-Along Apparation. It would have made the trip quick, and they wouldn't have to wake up so early.

In "A Clash of Kings", while Daenerys is in the House of the Undying, one of the visions is: Beyond loomed a cavernous stone hall, the largest she had ever seen. [...] Upon a towering barbed throne sat an old man in rich robes, an old man with dark eyes and long silver-grey hair. [...] Viserys, was her first thought the next time she paused, but a second glance told her otherwise. [...] "Aegon", he said to a woman nursing a newborn babe in a great wooden bed. "What a better name for a king?" "Will you make a song for him?" the woman asked. "He has a song," the man replied. "He is the prince that was promised, and his is the song of ice and fire ". A Clash of Kings, Chapter 48, Daenerys IV. My question is this: What is the song of ice and fire? And why is it Aegon's ? Answer The answer below has been shamelessly ripped off from the A Song of Ice and Fire wikia . The song of ice and fire is a subject of a prophecy and is e...

Peeves was a poltergeist. It generally irritated people and rather then helping them as well as making fun of them. Why was Peeves in the school? What is/was the job or work assigned to Peeves? Answer Peeves was never a person, therefore it never had a job of work assigned to them. JKR spoke to this issue directly on the FAQ on her old website Q : Peeves chews gum, how can he when he is a ghost? (Nearly Headless Nick can't eat). A : Peeves isn't a ghost; he was never a living person. He is an indestructible spirit of chaos, and solid enough to unscrew chandeliers, throw walking sticks and, yes, chew gum. She's also provided some extra clarity in a Leaky Cauldron interview in 2005 ES: Why does Dumbledore allow Peeves to stay in the castle? JKR: Can't get him out. ES: He's Dumbledore, he can do anything! JKR: No, no no no no. Peeves is like dry rot. You can try and eradicate it. It comes with the building. You’re stuck. If you've got Peeves you're stuck...

In Episode 1: The Phantom Menace , Anakin's mother, Shmi, said that he does not have a father, although it seemed to me that she doubted that. Is there a canonical answer as to who Anakin's father is? If so, who? Answer There is a recently published book, Star Wars: Darth Plagueis , that supposedly answer this question. From Anakin Skywalker Wookieepedia article In addition, although Darth Plagueis did attempt to influence the midichlorians to create the ultimate Sith weapon alongside Darth Sidious, the experiment was ultimately a failure, and the midichlorians, sensing the Sith's inherent malevolent intention, not only refused to do so, but in retaliation, conceived Anakin Skywalker in order to destroy the Sith once and for all. So, according to this, neither Darth Plagueis nor Darth Sidious are Anakin Skywalker's father, the midichlorians really conceived him without any outside direct intervention.

I've decided to watch the original Star Trek series from the beginning starting with "The Man Trap" (I know there were pilot episodes before that). In that episode alone 4 crewmen get "de-salted" which is a hefty loss of personnel in one go so I wondered what was the series total of fatalities amongst the crew. Answer Memory Alpha's list of TOS fatalities (complete with pictures) among the Enterprise crew only is as follows: Enterprise NCC 1701 casualties from episodes aired between September 8, 1966 and June 03, 1969 based on casualty figures from Memory Alpha. Note: Table does not contain casualties from the Mirror Universe or anybody killed and resurrected during an episode. A very interesting analysis done by mathematician, Matthew Barsalou, points out it was not the color of the shirt per se which caused the deaths of the crew (as the running joke about red shirts and expendability imply) but the occupation which made the red shirt appear to be as da...

In Star Wars , Luke wielded both a lightsaber and the Force, neither of which was explained in much detail. In The Phantom Menace , it was explained that intelligent microscopic life-forms called midi-chlorians enable Jedi to control the Force. We all loved that. Is there any similar explanation for how a lightsaber works? Answer Yes. See http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Lightsaber#Mechanics_and_specifications Summary: A diatium power cell generates the energy which passes through a series of focusing lenses and energizers before being converted into plasma. Focusing crystals project the plasma. Some widgets made the beam coherent. Plasma was reflected back by blade containment field. Insert other pseudo-technical mumbo jumbo to taste. Full explanation from Wookieepedia: High levels of energy generated by a high-output Diatium power cell was unleashed through a series of focusing lenses and energizers that converted the energy into plasma. The plasma was projected through a set of foc...

I may have missed it with the 3D, but I could have sworn I saw what I suspect was a lady Dwarf or two running from the Erebor in the beginning of the Hobbit, but they didn't seem bearded. If dwarf women aren't bearded, then was Aragorn just kidding in the Two Towers (movie) when he intimated that they all had beards? It's also stated by Tolkien in appendix A to The Lord of the Rings that female dwarves appear identical to males and we can assume they are also born with beards, just like their male counterparts. Answer If you google image dwarf women and hobbit, there are concept pictures purportedly from Weta Workshop that show women with light beards and extended sideburns—but definite facial hair. For all intents and purposes, these were probably the beards that Aragorn was referring to—they just weren't full mutton chop / lumberjack beards that we are familiar with... Not exactly discreet, so yes, they did have beards...

Simple question: are the Borg actually considered to be 'alive' within the Star Trek universe (i.e. by characters in the show)? Considering the following definition: the condition that distinguishes organisms from inorganic objects and dead organisms, being manifested by growth through metabolism, reproduction, and the power of adaptation to environment through changes originating internally. (Wordnik) (I think they are pretty good at the adapting part!) The Borg are semi-organic and semi-inorganic and can't actually reproduce by themselves, but rather 'assimilate' others (AFAIK - I'm pretty sure that the idea of Borg reproducing posited in Q Who? was disregarded once UFOP learnt more about the Borg - that seems to be verified by 7/9's explanation of the Borg throughout VOY). Would they be considered to be in the same category as a virus, which is really more an unknown category? (just a guiding question) I'm looking for in-universe opinions (as in the ...

When I was in 6th grade we read a short story (I'm pretty sure it was a short story) about Earth being conquered by aliens and they won't let the humans use electricity or cars. I don't remember much besides that but I'm pretty sure there were no turtle aliens in it. (It's not "The Singers Of Time".) There was also a story about an alien family that was made out of sugar and they wouldn't let their kids out of the house in case it rained. And an alien planet where the sun only come out for five minutes every 20 years or something and a girl from Earth would tell stories about the sun and flowers and the other kids locked her in a room so she couldn't see it. I don't know if these were all part of the same book or if we just read a lot of sci-fi stories.

I see some similarities between the movie Equilibrium and the book Fahrenheit 451. Does anyone know if there is actually any association? or am i just looking at the extremely basic ideas of censorship and rebellion of government employees as the basis of my observation?

How much control does the Doctor have over the TARDIS? In countless episodes it is portrayed as having a mind of its own, and not always doing exactly what the Doctor wants it to do. Answer It varies. Wildly. The Doctor took a course on how to pilot a TARDIS. He failed. The instruction manual for the TARDIS was flung into a supernova. The TARDIS seats six drivers. The Doctor works all six stations himself. The TARDIS does have a mind of its own, which when introduced empatically states that it takes the Doctor where he needs to go rather than where he wants . Although the Doctor is extremely clever and manages to mostly pilot the TARDIS by himself, there's so much error range introduced by all of the above factors that his landing accuracy is always vague. Or possibly more accurate, the Doctor pilots badly enough that the TARDIS finds plenty of ways to sneak in its influence to get where she feels he needs to be.

I'm looking for a series of books that deals with humans escaping Earth and having a mother ship full of humans who are being sent throughout the universe to different planets. The ship can transform the humans into whatever type of alien the planet holds. One set of sisters is transformed to cow-like aliens and sent to spy on that planet. All the while the group that's taken the mother ship full of human colonizers is trying to evade/escape the government people from Earth. The 9 or 10 humans who steal the colonizing ship drop a couple of humans (transformed to whatever the indigenous species is) to the planet to spy...the end result is to try and overthrow the Earth government. The humans that the colonizing ship transform to aliens cannot be turned back into humans ever again so when they take on the assignment to spy they do so knowing that they won't ever be able to be humans again. Answer This sounds like the 'Rings of the Master' series by Jack L Chalker. 4...

I would love to identify a sci-fi novel I read in the late 60s or 70s. It followed a group of young space cadets through their training in the Space Academy. The training culminated in small groups of cadets being sent through a gateway in the space station, into different worlds where they had to survive whatever conditions they met beyond the gateway, as part of their training. One such trip went wrong and the group ended up stranded in a hostile world for days, hoping to be rescued by their trainers. I can't remember much about the story or protagonists so this may be too vague, but I remember descriptions of a vast space station hall and these young cadets bringing whatever kit they hoped they might need - some brought breathing apparatus and full survival gear, but others came with very little as they believed they would not be sent into conditions where they could die without the right equipment. They hadn't bargained for the power surge or whatever it was that misdirecte...

The whole concept seems eerily similar... a young child, groomed to be the main hope to win a war, with no adult support, and deceived about the main point of the struggle. This seems to go well beyond merely common tropes. A young kid growing up in an oppressive family situation suddenly learns that he is one of a special class of children with special abilities, who are to be educated in a remote training facility where student life is dominated by an intense game played by teams flying in midair, at which this kid turns out to be exceptionally talented and a natural leader. He trains other kids in unauthorized extra sessions, which enrages his enemies, who attack him with the intention of killing him; but he is protected by his loyal, brilliant friends and gains strength from the love of some of his family members. He is given special guidance by an older man of legendary accomplishments who previously kept the enemy at bay. He goes on to become the crucial figure in a struggle agai...